2014 Toyota Avalon

RECEIVED A RECALL NOTICE FROM TOYOTA. THE WORLD TOYOTA DEALERSHIP HAS NO IDEA WHEN PARTS MAY COME IN. THE RECALL SOUNDS SERIOUS, COULD POTENTIALLY BE A FIRE. IT IS SHAMEFUL THAT THEY DO NOT HAVE THE PART AND THEY HAVE NO IDEA WHEN THEY WILL GET IT. WHEN RECALLS ARE INITIATED ARE THEY NOT UNDER SOME KIND OF ORDER TO CORRECT THE PROBLEM IN A TIMELY FASHION? *TR

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2014 TOYOTA AVALON. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING AT 60 MPH, THE VEHICLE VEERED TO THE LEFT. IN ADDITION, THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE ACCELERATOR PEDAL WAS DEPRESSED BUT THE VEHICLE FAILED TO ACCELERATE. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED. THE FAILURE RECURRED ON NUMEROUS OCCASIONS. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 2,000.

THE COVER TO THE GAS TANK LOCKS WHEN THE CAR IS LOCKED, AND CAN BE OPENED WHEN THE CAR IS UNLOCKED. IF, FOR SOME REASON, THIS MECHANISM IS INOPERATIVE, AND ONE CANNOT OPEN THE GAS TANK COVER, ONE IS INSTRUCTED TO OPEN THE TRUNK, REMOVE THE TRUNK LINING, REACH IN BLINDLY PAST ALL THE WIRES AND CONNECTERS, AND FIND A LITTLE WHITE PLASTIC LEVER. THE LEVER EMERGES FROM BEHIND THE TRUNK THROUGH A HOLE IN THE TRUNK THAT IS COMPOSED OF SHARP METAL. THE LEVER IS ATTACHED BY A FLIMSY LITTLE PLASTIC WIRE. ONE MUST PULL THE LEVER PERFECTLY HORIZONTALLY. IF ONE EXERTS THE SLIGHTEST UPWARDS PRESSURE WHEN PULLING ON THE LEVER, THE FLIMSY LITTLE PLASTIC WIRE IS SHEARED BY THE SHARP EDGES OF THE HOLE THROUGH WHICH THE WIRE EMERGES. EVEN IF ONE MANAGES THE ABOVE FEAT, THE GAS TANK COVER IS NOT GUARANTEED TO OPEN. SO ONE IS STUCK AT THE GAS STATION WITH NO WAY TO ADD GASOLINE TO THE TANK. AND IF THE WIRE IS SHEARED OFF, ONE IS REALLY IN DEEP TROUBLE. FIRST OF ALL, THE WIRE IS NOT COVERED UNDER WARRANTY, SO I AM REQUIRED TO PAY FOR THE REPLACEMENT. THEY SAY IT WAS MY FAULT; I PULLED TOO HARD. THE TRUTH IS IT IS THE FAULT OF THE ENGINEERS FOR DESIGNING SUCH A POOR SYSTEM. THE WIRE IS FLIMSY PLASTIC; THE EDGES OF THE HOLE ARE SHARP METAL; HOW IS IT POSSIBLE TO PULL THE LEVER WITHOUT SHEARING THE WIRE. THE WHOLE SYSTEM NEEDS TO BE REDESIGNED. SECONDLY, PULLING THE WIRE DOESN'T ALWAYS WORK. WHAT IS THE BACKUP PLAN? THIRDLY, I WAS ABLE TO REMOVE THE FELT LINING OF THE TRUNK, REACH IN BLINDLY, AND FIND THE LEVER. THERE IS NO WAY IN THE WORLD THAT MY WIFE COULD HAVE DONE THIS. THE LEVER SHOULD BE READILY AVAILABLE SIMPLY BY OPENING THE TRUNK. *TR

AS I WAS ENTERING THE RAMP TO GET INTO I-95, I HEARD A LOUD BAND AND HEARD DEBRIS HITTING THE BOTTOM OF MY CAR. CAR INSTANTLY STARTED STEERING ROUGH. I PULLED OVER IMMEDIATELY AND NOTICED MY TIRE LOW PRESSURE LIGHT ON. UPON INSPECTION , NOTICED THAT MY RIGHT REAR TIRE WAS FLAT. UPON LOOKING UNDER THE CAR AT THE WHEEL I SAW A 5 INCH DIAMETER SECTION OF THE METAL ALLOY WHEEL MISSING. CALLED TOYOTA ROADSIDE ASSISTANCE FOR HELP AND THEY DISPATCHED MAINTENANCE TO INSTALL SPARE TIRE. TOOK PICTURES OF DAMAGED WHEEL AND AVAILABLE UPON REQUEST. HAVE NEVER NOTICED A WHEEL EXPLODING DURING NORMAL DRIVING ON DEBRIS FREE ROAD. DID A WALKTHROUGH AND DID NOT NOTICE ANY SHARP OBJECTS OR OTHER MATERIAL THAT COULD HAVE CAUSED THIS MISHAP. *TR

I BOUGHT A NEW TOYOTA AVALON. AFTER ABOUT A MONTH I NOTICED THE HEADLINER FALLING OFF BY THE SUN ROOF. TOYOTA REPLACED THE HEADLINER. THE NEW HEADLINER DID THE SAME THING AFTER A FEW WEEKS. BROUGHT THE CAR BACK TO TOYOTA AND THE PUT DOUBLE SIDED TAPE ON TOP OF THE DOUBLE SIDED TAPE WHICH IS PUT ON TO HOLD THE HEADLINER UP. THE HEADLINE CAME DOWN AGAIN. TOYOTA WANT TO REPLACE THE HEADLINER AGAIN. I ASKED IF THERE HAD BEEN ANY CHANGES IN THE HEADLINER AND THEY SAID NO. THIS IS A COMMON PROBLEM THAT HAD BEEN HAPPENING WITH THE 2013-2014 AVALONS. *TR

I WAS STOPPING IN A TENNIS COURT PARKING LOT WHEN THE CAR SUDDENLY ACCELERATED AND HIT A TREE. THE DAMAGE CAME TO ABOUT $7,000. THIS WAS THE SECOND TIME THIS HAPPENED. THE FIRST TIME WAS 4/2/2014. THE CAR SUDDENLY ACCELERATED WHEN I WAS GOING APPROX. 5 MILES AN HOUR BUT I WAS ON A STRAIGHT STRETCH OF ROAD AND STOPPED THE CAR WITHOUT DOING ANY DAMAGE. THE FIRST TIME I TOOK THE CAR TO THE TOYOTA DEALER AND THEY COULD NOT FIND ANYTHING WRONG. I FELL THAT THIS CAR HAS A SERIOUS DEFECT AND SHOULD NOT BE DRIVEN UNTIL THIS PROBLEM IS FIXED. *TR

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2014 TOYOTA AVALON. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE CENTER CONSOLE BECAME EXTREMELY HOT TO THE TOUCH AND A BURNING ODOR WAS PRESENT INSIDE THE VEHICLE. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER, WHO WAS UNABLE TO DIAGNOSE THE FAILURE. THE CONTACT MENTIONED THAT THE DEALER TESTED THE TEMPERATURE INSIDE THE CENTER CONSOLE, WHICH READ MORE THEN 140 DEGREES. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 10,000. THE VIN WAS NOT AVAILABLE.

I HAVE HAD A DRIVING LICENSE FOR 68 YEARS WITH 3 MINOR COLLISIONS WITH NO FATALITIES OR HOSPITALIZATION. WHEN I WAS TAUGHT TO DRIVE A VEHICLE WITH AN AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION, I WAS INTRODUCED TO LEFT FOOT BRAKING AND TOLD IT WOULD RESULT IN FASTER BRAKING AS WELL AS INSURING THAT I WOULD NOT DRIVE INTO OR THROUGH A STORE OR BUILDING WHEN MY RIGHT FOOT SLIPPED OFF THE BRAKE PEDAL ONTO THE ACCELERATOR. WE TOOK POSSESSION OF THE AVALON ON AUGUST 6, 2014. THIS FIRST FRIGHTENING INCIDENT OCCURRED AUGUST 11, 2014. I WAS ATTEMPTING A U TURN TO REVERSE DIRECTION AT AN ISLAND ON A DIVIDED HIGHWAY, EASING OFF ON THE GAS PEDAL, BUT NOT REMOVING MY FOOT FROM IT COMPLETELY, WHILE MODERATING MY SPEED WITH SLIGHT APPLICATIONS OF THE BRAKES WITH MY LEFT FOOT. I REMOVED MY FOOT FROM THE BRAKE PEDAL AND APPLIED A BIT MORE GAS, AND NOTHING HAPPENED, AND I THOUGHT THAT MY ENGINE HAD STALLED. MY TACHOMETER SHOWED THE ENGINE WAS REVVED TO 1200 RPM, BUT THE CAR WAS SLOWING DOWN. AFTER A DELAY I ESTIMATE WAS 3 OR 4 SECONDS, THE TRANSMISSION SUDDENLY ENGAGED, AND THE CAR TOOK OFF. I HAD A FEW MORE SIMILAR INCIDENTS ENTERING OR LEAVING PARKING LOTS IN THE FOLLOWING WEEKS. I WAS TOLD BY A TOYOTA SERVICE REP. AT THE DEALER THAT THE TOYOTAS ARE DESIGNED TO DISCOURAGE LEFT FOOT BRAKING. AFTER GOING THROUGH MY SEVERAL TOYOTA MANUALS I DISCOVERED ON PAGE 27 OF THE 2014 TOYOTA QUICK REFERENCE GUIDE A PARAGRAPH ENTITLED "SMART STOP TECHNOLOGY", WHICH EXPLAINS A FEATURE INCORPORATED TO KEEP A CAR FROM ROLLING BACKWARDS WHEN STARTING ON A HILL I BELIEVE THAT THIS COULD CAUSE AN ACCIDENT FOR A DRIVER WITH MANY YEARS OF LEFT FOOT BRAKING. *TR

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2014 TOYOTA AVALON. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING 70 MPH, THE SUNROOF GLASS SHATTERED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO A DEALER WHERE IT WAS INFORMED THAT THE SUNROOF GLASS NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 11,144. UPDATED 10/7/14*CN

DRIVING DOWN ROAD.. NO CARS IN FRONT OF ME NO OBJECTS IN ROAD. CLEAR SUNNY DAY WHEN THE PRE-COLLISION SYSTEM ALARM SOUNDED AND THE PCS INDICATOR LIGHT LITE. THE ABS ENGAGED. AND THE CAR CAME TO A COMPLETE AND SUDDEN HALT. LUCKILY NOONE WAS BEHIND ME, BECAUSE IF THERE WAS, A REAR END COLLISION COULD HAVE OCCURED. THIS ISSUE DID OCCUR TO A LESSOR EXTENT ON TWO PRIOR OCCASIONS (ABOUT 1 MONTH AGO) BUT THE CAR DID NOT COME TO A COMPLETE HALT AS IT DID ON 7/6. IN BOTH OF THOSE INSTANCES, THERE WERE NO CARS IN FRONT OF ME AND NO OBSTRUCTIONS IN THE ROAD. THE ROAD(S) WERE STRAIT. NO CURVES. TOOK CAR TO TOYOTA AND THEY REFUSE TO DO ANYTHING ABOUT THE ISSUE BECAUSE THEY COULD NOT DUPLICATE THE PROBLEM. IM AFRAID THAT THIS WILL HAPPEN AGAIN, WHICH COULD HURT MYSELF, OTHERS OR CAUSE PROPERTY DAMAGE. *TR